Taking Care Of Their Own
by PattiL61
Summary: CHAPTER 3 (CONCLUSION) UPLOADED 8/30/02 - Title is self-explanatory, plus I'm terrible at summaries ;) Hope you enjoyed this story. Feedback is much appreciated.
1. Default Chapter

Taking Care Of Their Own  
PattiL61  
  
It was late August. It was hot. The kids playing in the neighborhood surrounding the police and fire stations of the 55th Precinct were running around, playing stickball. There were girls on the sidewalk jumping rope and playing with dolls in their little strollers. Some were bickering and picking fights. They were ready to return to school, whether they realized it or not. They were bored, having explored everything the summer had to offer. Mothers were sitting on their steps, watching over their young, breaking up the quarrels, and talking about how the kids were ready to return to the structure of the school schedule.  
  
Half of the crew from the firehouse was playing basketball on the half-court they had constructed alongside of the station. Half the neighborhood kids were either playing or standing around yelling encouragement or remarks at the players. The other half of the FDNY personnel were either in making dinner or relaxing in chairs pulled outside, the front legs raised off the ground and the backs of the chairs leaning against the brick building, all the chores of the house completed. It was Doherty's turn to cook tonight and the smell of his famous Irish stew wafted out of the open overhead door of the station, around the immaculate red truck.   
  
It was time for the police officers to change shifts, with the Third Watch officers trickling into the station with their uniforms, fresh from the cleaners, slung over their shoulders. These were the officers that most of the people of the neighborhood were familiar with; these officers were seen every day as the kids returned home from school and while they played outside until it was time for dinner and bed. The other two shifts were usually seen only when there was trouble; the Second Watch (7am to 3pm) if there was trouble in school, and the First Watch (11pm to 7 am) during the wee hours of the morning, when unsavory characters roamed the streets, lurking in the shadows.  
  
The kids heard the familiar roar of Officer Bosco's blue Mustang and Officer Ty's black Navigator. They loved it when Ty and Bosco revved their engines as they came down the street and the two young officers were only too willing to please. The kids moved to the side to let them both by, waving and yelling their greetings. Matthew, Michael and Shaun all ran over to Ty and Bosco to say hello and get their orders for the day.  
  
"Hi Officer Ty! Hi Officer Bosco!" all three said in unison. "Hey guys," said Bosco, smiling back at the kids. Ty was lifting Shaun up by the arms and swinging him over and around his shoulders, putting him safely back on the ground again. "Again!" yelled Shaun, jumping, knowing he could get the tall officer to lift him up at least three of four more times before he had to leave to get ready for work. Ty had often joked, "Who needs to go the gym when I can lift this guy all the time?"  
  
Bosco knelt down so that he was at eye level with the three boys. "Okay, guys. I just got my car detailed today, so it's your job today to make sure that no one gets any fingerprints on it, okay?" he said. "Yes sir," they replied, taking their task very seriously.  
  
"Alright," said Bosco, standing up and taking the three packs of baseball cards out of his shirt pocket and handing one to each of them. Davis mussed the hair on each of the kids' heads and said, "Okay, don't forget to watch out for traffic and don't get into any trouble. Help your Mom with your baby sister," he finished as Bosco and Ty looked over and waved at the boys' mother, Katy, who was sitting on the steps feeding the baby her bottle. This family was one of their own - the young husband and father, one of those lost in the attacks at the World Trade Center almost a year ago, never got to see the beautiful baby girl born three weeks after his death. Everyone at the firehouse and police station kept an eye on the family, stopping over often to see if they needed anything done around the house and sometimes just to pick up the boys and take them to play with their own kids or to a ball game - to give their mother a chance to regroup for a while before returning to the task of raising four children alone.  
  
Katy waved back at the officers and yelled, "Thanks Bosco, thanks Ty," as the two officers turned to go into the station house.  
  
The ambulance was just returning from a routine call, the back-up alarm sounding as Doc skillfully backed the rig into the station. Kim jumped out of the passenger side of the rig and yelled back to Jimmy, "I'm gonna go invite Katy and the kids!"   
  
"Okay, you know I always make too much of this anyway," he said, knowing that the meal was one of Michael's favorites.  
  
Kim walked across the street waving at Faith, who was rushing into the police station to get ready for roll call. "Late again, I see," joked Kim with Faith. "I'm tellin' ya', the more I hurry, the further behind I get!" Faith yelled back. Faith waved at Katy quickly and disappeared into the station.  
  
Kim walked up to Katy and she immediately knew what Kim wanted. "Hey Kim," she said smiling as she handed the infant over to Kim who never seemed to get enough of holding the child. "She needs another one," Katy thought to herself, silently hoping that she and Jimmy would just work it out already. "Life is too short," she thought to herself, a wave of sadness coming over her, bringing a tear to her eye. She casually wiped it away, hoping that Kim hadn't noticed, but she did.  
  
"So, Jimmy's cooking again. You know what that means," Kim said with a smile.   
  
"Mmmm. I can smell it," Katy said as she watched her boys run up the steps and sit down next to her and behind her. Shaun, the youngest of the three boys, took up his usual position, hanging over her shoulders from behind.  
  
"Mom, Jimmy said we could come for dinner," said Michael with pleading eyes. "Can we?" he asked, willing her to say yes. Katy and Kim exchanged glances. Kim knew that Katy was worried about becoming too dependent upon the men and women from the 5-5. She needed to know she could do it on her own. But, it was nice knowing that they were just a phone call away if she needed anything, she thought, remembering the night that little Stephanie was born.   
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
She had gone into labor at about 8:30 at night. The kids were sound asleep in bed and she didn't know what she was going to do. She had called her sister to come watch the kids, but her contractions were coming so fast and her water had broken. She called over to the firehouse and found out that the bus was out on another run. She hung up the phone and was just about to call 9-1-1 to have another ambulance dispatched when there was a knock on the door. She opened the door and saw that D.K. and Jimmy were there. They told her not to worry, they'd take her on the truck if they had to, but she was going to get to the hospital on time. D.K. had gone to the neighbor, explained what was happening and asked her to come over and sit with the boys until Katy's sister could arrive. The neighbor didn't hesitate. As they were walking Katy out the front door, Bosco and Faith were just coming out of the station with Sully and Ty after making a few arrests at an out of control party.  
  
"Hey guys," said Sully. "What's up?"  
  
Faith noticed the look on Katy's face and the nervous looks on the faces of D.K. and Jimmy. She knew that Katy was close to her due date and assumed that it was about to happen.  
  
"Katy?" Faith said, looking at her. Katy nodded and Faith said, "Bosco get the car," as she looked over at the firehouse and noticed that the rig was not there. Bosco looked at Faith, still without a clue as to what was happening. "Why?" he said, puzzled. Sully, who had caught on to what was happening, punched Bosco in the arm and said, "Because Katy's gonna have the baby!"  
  
"What!?" he said loudly, his eyes filled with shock. "Oh God," he finished as he ran to get the car. Davis got on the radio to advise Central that 55-David would be transporting a woman in labor from the station to Mercy. Lieutenant Swersky was at the front desk of the stationhouse and heard the transmission over the radio. He immediately ran around the desk and out the front door toward Katy's house.  
  
The Lieutenant saw the crowd standing in the middle of the road, helping Katy into the back of 55-David and Faith climbing in behind her. Bosco jumped into the driver's seat and started the engine, flipping on the lights just as the Lieutenant jumped into the passenger side of the front seat. Bosco looked over at him and said, "You wanna drive Lieu?" not wanting to get on the Lieutenant's bad side in this matter.  
  
"Just drive Boscorelli," he ordered as Bosco slammed the car into drive and started off, siren wailing. "And you better get us there in one piece or you won't live to tell about it," he said. "That's my daughter and grandchild you have in your care," he finished.  
  
"Not a problem, Sir," said Bosco as he expertly navigated his way to the hospital without incident.  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
"Katy?" Kim said again, noticing the smile in Katy's face. "What d'ya say? You up for some stew?"  
  
"What? Oh yeah, absolutely. My mouth has been watering for it all afternoon," she said as she stood up to get a few things to bring with her for the baby, the three boys jumping up and down with delight as they followed Kim, holding Stephanie, to the other "wing" of her house.  
  
Katy looked up and down the block and saw the Third Watch officers leaving for their patrols. She glanced over at the firehouse, the two most welcoming buildings on the block and said a little prayer for the men and women of the 5-5 to come back safely from their shifts.  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
The End. 


	2. Chapter 2

Taking Care of Their Own  
  
Chapter 2  
  
Michael was helping Jimmy clean up the kitchen after dinner. Jimmy noticed that Michael kept munching on the leftover stew as he was drying the dishes. He reached up and grabbed a bowl, dumped half of the leftover stew in it, covered it and made a mental note to bring it over to Katy when he brought Michael home later.  
  
"Hey, Sport," said Jimmy. "Ready to work on those knots again?" Michael nodded and, after putting the last of the dried dishes away for Jimmy, ran past him to the apparatus bay to get the practice ropes with a big smile on his face. Jimmy had been teaching Michael the knots that firefighters use every day in their job.  
  
Katy had left about a half hour ago with the other kids, Kim helping her drag them home reluctantly, leaving Michael to hang around the firehouse with the guys. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
Jimmy thought back on the fun that everyone had at dinner sitting around the huge table, joking and kidding and passing the food back and forth. They had actually managed to make it through a meal without getting interrupted with a call. Everyone had taken turns playing with the kids and no one was really sure whether the kids or the crew had more fun. The kids were in the TV room, playing and watching one of the many cartoon videos that the guys had brought in from home for when the kids from the neighborhood dropped in to visit.  
  
Katy had wandered out into the apparatus bay and was standing in front of Mark's gear locker, still full of his gear. No one had wanted to empty it out, the finality of the action too much to bear.  
  
Jimmy walked up behind her and quietly said, "Hey." Katy jumped a little and turned toward him, "Hey yourself," she smiled sadly. "Thanks for dinner. It was great."  
  
Jimmy nodded and watched as Katy walked over to the plaque that Jimmy had made in honor of those they lost in the attacks of September 11. She ran her fingers across Mark's name, a tear escaping down her cheek, despite how hard she tried to hold them at bay. Even though it tore her apart, she longed to come here - to this place, this job that Mark had loved with all his heart. She was secretly grateful for the invites to visit.  
  
Jimmy started to turn and walk away to give her some privacy when he heard her quietly say, "I guess I should clear out Mark's stuff from his locker." She was referring to his locker in the bunkroom upstairs where members kept personal items for use when they were working - extra clothes, personal items, pictures of wives, kids, girlfriends and boyfriends. Jimmy put a hand on Katy's shoulder and said, "I can do that for you, Katy. Or, I can help you with it if you want me to." She put her hand over his on her shoulder and said, "That's okay. I'll do it. Can you keep an eye on the kids for me?" He squeezed her shoulder again, "Sure. Call me if you need me." He watched her walk toward the stairs, stopping by the trashcan to pick up the empty box that was lying along side of it.  
  
Jimmy still missed Mark so much. They were best friends. They had grown up together and couldn't believe their good fortune at both of them being stationed at the 5-5. "He shouldn't have been there," Jimmy thought to himself. He was in the area because he was at the travel agency. He had been planning a surprise vacation for Katy. He was going to give her six months after the baby was born and then her parents and his parents were going to split up taking care of the kids while he took her away for a week. They hadn't had a vacation since their honeymoon. He loved his life and he loved his kids, but Mark had been craving some alone time with Katy. Then the attacks happened. He hadn't hesitated. There were eyewitnesses that remembered him running into the World Trade Center buildings to help the injured escape. He had entered and re-entered the buildings numerous times, carrying out those who were unable to make it out on their own. Jimmy remembered the sense of relief when he was found in the rubble that had once been the Towers - he was able to have a proper burial - something too many families were denied. Katy had received the tickets and brochures in the mail, addressed to Mark, two months after Stephanie's birth. They sat, unused, in Mark's dresser at home.  
  
Jimmy had come out to check on Katy and found her standing at the open overhead door, looking up at the sky, the now-full box on the floor at her feet. Jimmy walked up to her and looked up. "You okay?" he asked her. She just shook her head no and turned into him. He took her in his arms and held her, letting her cry for as long as she needed to. Matthew had come out looking for his mother and before Kim could corral him back into the other room he saw his mother crying.  
  
Kim knelt down alongside Matthew and he looked at her questioningly, "What's wrong with Mommy?"  
  
"Well, Mommy is feeling a little sad. You know how sometimes you miss your Daddy more than usual and it makes you cry?" Matthew nodded. "Well, that's what Mommy is feeling right now. You know how your Mom holds you when you feel sad and it makes you feel a little better? Jimmy is trying to make Mommy feel a little better." Matthew walked over to where Jimmy and Katy stood. He saw that Jimmy was crying too and he wrapped his arms around them both at knee level. They each reached an arm down and enveloped the boy. Kim walked in to check on the other two kids. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
Michael and Jimmy were sitting out in front of the firehouse, working on the knots and enjoying the night air. "That's right, now just bring it through that hole and you got it," encouraged Jimmy, as he heard a phone ringing inside the firehouse. "I did it!" Michael yelled proudly, high- fiving Jimmy. He had been working on learning how to make the quick escape harness that the firefighters wore when they entered burning buildings in case they got cut off and had to make a quick escape out a window. It had been giving him a lot of trouble, but he finally figured it out. "Way to go," said Jimmy.  
  
Jimmy looked at the clock and realized that it was 9:30. "Wow! We gotta get you home Mikey," said Jimmy as D.K. yelled out to him, "Katy said she's gonna file a missing person's report if you don't bring her kid back to her!" They both laughed and Jimmy said, "Tell her we already left!"  
  
Michael and Jimmy put their chairs back inside the firehouse and turned to head home. Jimmy stopped quickly, saying, "Hang on Mikey. I put some leftover stew in a bowl for you to take home. You can have some for lunch tomorrow or something," he called over his shoulder as he ran back to the kitchen to grab the dish. He returned quickly and the two headed over to Michael's house.  
  
Katy was waiting in the doorway, the three younger children already in bed and fast asleep. "Sorry Katy. We just kinda lost track of time," said Jimmy, apologetically, handing her the bowl of leftovers. She smiled and nodded as Michael jumped in with, "Mom, I finally did that knot!" She hugged her son, "Great job, Mikey. I knew you could do it if you just kept trying. Now go ahead and wash up, brush your teeth and put on your PJs. You can take a bath tomorrow. I'll be up in a minute to tuck you in," she said as Michael yelled over his shoulder, "Ok! Bye Jimmy!" Katy cringed at the level of his voice and loudly whispered, "You better not wake up that baby!" She laughed and looked back at Jimmy who was still waiting to be scolded for keeping her son out so late.  
  
"It's okay. He doesn't have to get up early tomorrow and I figured you guys were just hangin' out," she said, forgiving him. He noticed that her eyes were red and still wet. He looked past her to see the box of Mark's belongings spread out on the couch and coffee table. She must have been going through everything, remembering. Jimmy nodded and said, "Well, g'night Katy. Tell Mikey I said goodnight." Just as he finished the sentence, he heard the sound of the air horn and the distinctive sound of the engine as it revved up. The crew was letting Jimmy know they had a job.  
  
Jimmy jumped down off the steps saying, "Gotta go to work!" He turned and headed across the street. "Be careful," Katy called after him. He waved over his shoulder and was jumping into the truck as D.K. handed him his turnout gear and said, "Apartment building." Michael was watching the truck pull out from his bedroom window upstairs, remembering all the times that his father had waved up at him, knowing that his son was looking out the window waiting for his wave as he went to a job.  
  
The Lieutenant turned toward the crew and said, "Dispatcher is getting numerous calls. There's smoke and fire showing. The building is being evacuated." The crew made last minute adjustments to their gear, put on their "game faces," and mentally prepared to go to work. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ TBC. 


	3. Chapter 3 - CONCLUSION

Taking Care Of Their Own  
  
Chapter 3  
  
  
Their truck was the first to arrive to the heavy smell of smoke in the air, and the crackling of the fire above them. People were rushing around in the streets, some in nightclothes, some carrying boxes of belongings, all with a sense of panic. The FDNY crew left the safety of their truck and looked up to see flames shooting from numerous windows. They heard the many sirens of the incoming units, knowing that their backup was moments away.   
  
Jimmy grabbed the tools of his trade off the truck as he looked around at the scene before him. He noticed two police units parked adjacent to the fire building; 55-David and 55-Charlie - Bosco/Yokas and Sullivan/Davis. He saw Sully standing near his unit, looking up at the building with concern, but what struck him most was the look of severe distress on Davis' face as he was looking at the front door of the burning building - almost as if he was waiting for someone to emerge. With a sick feeling in the pit of his stomach, he looked over at 55-David and saw no one there. He looked around the fire scene to see if Bosco and Faith were working crowd control or traffic. They were nowhere to be found. He immediately knew what the sick feeling in the pit of his stomach was from - his friends must be inside the building. He knew instinctively that Bosco must have been told of or heard that someone was trapped inside the building. He knew that he wouldn't hesitate to help, fearing that with the speed the fire was progressing, it would be too late by the time the fire department arrived. He also knew that Faith would not let her partner go anywhere without backup - just as Bosco would not let Faith go without backing her up. They never thought twice about it.   
  
Even though it felt like it took forever to take in the situation and grab his equipment, it had only been a moment. Jimmy glanced toward Davis again, their eyes locking on each other. He knew that they had been in there long enough for Davis to feel that Bosco and Faith were in serious trouble. He gave a slight nod of understanding to Ty and turned to run into the building calling over to his own partner, "D.K.! Let's go. We've got two inside." Without hesitating, D.K. grabbed his equipment and the two were off, notifying the Lieutenant on the radio that they were entering the building to begin their search and that there were two confirmed missing in the building.  
  
"10-4," came the reply from the Lieutenant. "Search Team 2 is readying to enter from the back." Jimmy acknowledged the Lieutenant's reply and the two ascended the stairs, immediately feeling the heat from the fire against their gear. They donned their air masks and entered the building and began their search. They were notified by radio that the other search team had entered from the rear of the building and were heading down to check the basement. By listening to their radio, they knew exactly where their brothers were and exactly what the progress of the fire was.   
  
D.K. and Jimmy had finished the search of the first floor and were about to start up to the second floor when they ran into the other search team emerging from the basement with two victims. After a quick look, Jimmy saw that it was not the two missing officers. They gave a slight nod to each other and D.K. advised over the radio, "Lieu, Team 2 is coming out with two. Have EMS meet them at the front door." The reply came back, "Team 1, message received. Team 2, EMS is ready and waiting."  
  
D.K. and Jimmy began up the stairs, hearing the truck crew on the roof ventilating the fire. They searched the building, floor-by-floor. They had reached the top of the stairs - the 7th floor - when they saw someone lying, unconscious on the floor in front of them. D.K. knelt down and saw that it was Faith Yokas. He felt for a pulse and she stirred slightly. He picked her up and started to head down the stairs. Jimmy advised the Lieutenant that D.K. was on his way out with one unconscious victim and received confirmation that his message was heard. He yelled through his mask that Bosco had to be close so he was going to continue to look. D.K. nodded and began to descend the stairs so he could get the officer out and return to help Jimmy.  
  
D.K. reached the 5th floor stairway, passing firefighters with hoselines attacking the fire. He headed out the front door and heard a loud splintering sound. He looked behind him to see the stairs he had just come down collapse. He tapped Walsh on the shoulder and told him that Jimmy was still upstairs. Walsh nodded and put his hoseline down to see if he could find a way up to Jimmy as D.K. brought Faith out to EMS.  
  
Jimmy heard the stairs collapse behind him and turned to make sure that D.K. made it down safely. He saw that he was safe and returned his focus to finding Bosco. He continued down the hallway into a room, the smoke so thick he couldn't see anything. He immediately dropped to his knees and began crawling around in the methodical pattern they had trained in so that he wouldn't become disoriented and lose his way. He felt around with his hands, reaching out, but keeping one foot against the wall to keep track of where he was. He reached out and felt something. At the same time, he felt a slight spray of water as the hoselines from the ladder truck outside came through the window. The smoke lifted slightly and he could make out the form of two people; one was a child and one appeared to be an adult with the child wrapped tightly in his arms. He grabbed at the two forms in front of him and felt the officer's gun belt under his gloves. He knew he had found them and felt a sense of relief as he felt for pulses on both and found they were both still alive.   
  
Jimmy grabbed the child and made his way back to the now collapsed stairwell, knowing that Walsh was waiting there for him. He reached down as far as he could and dropped the child to Walsh and told him that he had one more victim and he would be right back with him. Walsh nodded and headed out to bring the child to the waiting EMS personnel. D.K. passed the child and Walsh as he returned into the building. He headed up to where the stairs used to be to wait for Jimmy to return with Bosco.   
  
Jimmy had just returned to the room and grabbed Bosco under the shoulders to drag him back out when he heard another loud crashing noise. He turned to see that the hallway behind him was collapsing, blocking his route of escape. He heard the sound of the air horns outside the building; a signal to those inside to evacuate as collapse was imminent. He looked for the windows to see if he had another way to escape. The ladder truck that was pouring water onto the fire from outside had moved to another part of the building. He headed toward the window to make his escape using his rescue harness. He suddenly remembered that he had left the rope - his escape harness - lying on the chair at the firehouse when he brought Mikey home.   
  
At the same time that the hallway collapsed and the air horns sounded, D.K. ran out of the building and around the corner to the side that Jimmy would be on. He knew that he would try to come out a window using his rescue harness with the ropes that were hanging down the side of building, used to haul extra equipment up to the roof. Walsh ran to the ladder truck that was operating at that side of the building, telling him to swing the ladder back around because they had a man trapped. The ladder operator immediately began to rotate the ladder back.  
  
Faith was already conscious, but coughing violently with tears from the smoke running down her face, when the little girl was brought over to EMS by Walsh. "Where's Bosco?" she asked Walsh, alarm evident in her voice. Walsh put a hand on her shoulder and said, "Jimmy's bringin' him out," before he turned and went back to the fire, as Doc made Faith put the oxygen back on. Carlos was checking her over for injuries and Kim and Alex were working on the little girl who had stopped breathing. Sully and Davis brought the little girl's mother over to her and were holding her back so the paramedics could work on the child. Davis was relieved that Faith was okay, but was still worried about Bosco. Kim and Alex had gotten the girl breathing again.  
  
Jimmy held his breath and took his mask off to place over Bosco's face to give him a few breaths of clean air while he looked around the room for something to use to escape. He felt the heat begin to rise in the room as the flames approached and the smoke increased again. He returned the air mask to his own face and reached into his pocket for his knife to cut down some drapes and felt something familiar. He pulled it out and looked at it. It was the escape harness that Mikey had made. He must have put it in Jimmy's coat pocket when Jimmy went back for the stew. He gripped it tightly, offering up a silent thank you to Mikey and put the harness on. He went to the window and reached out and found the ropes that he knew would be hanging down the side of the building. He tied off and bent down to scoop Bosco up and over his shoulder. He lifted his left leg over the windowsill and managed to maneuver himself and Bosco out the window. He hoped that Bosco didn't wake up now and start to move around because he didn't really have the time to tie him off to the rope as well. He just knew instinctively that the room was ready to flashover behind him and wanted to get the hell out of there.  
  
D.K. and Walsh saw Jimmy emerge from the window with Bosco at the same time that the room flashed and fire shot out the window that the two men had just come from. Jimmy strained with one arm to lower himself and Bosco to the ground. The other arm remained around Bosco's still body.   
  
Davis, Sully and Faith all looked toward the building and saw the flash of flames come out of the window and feared the worst. "No!" Faith yelled, trying to get up. Sully held her back as she again screamed out, "Bosco!"  
  
After what seemed like an eternity, the three officers heard a cheer and looked up to see a soot-covered Jimmy, smoke still coming off his turnout gear, carrying Bosco over to them. He had placed his air mask over Bosco's face and as he laid the unconscious officer on the stretcher, Doc and Carlos went to work. After a few minutes of pure oxygen, Bosco began to stir and cough. He was reaching around for something and Faith leaned over and said, "You did it. We've got her. She's safe." With that information, Bosco seemed to relax and a few moments later he was fully awake and fighting with Doc and Carlos about taking off the oxygen.  
  
Jimmy and Ty exchanged glances. Ty just shook his head with a grin and slapped Jimmy on the back and the two shook hands. "Awesome," was the only thing that Davis could manage to say. "Absolutely!" Jimmy responded, with his usual cocky attitude, turning to return to the finish his job.  
  
The Paramedic teams readied their patients for transport to Mercy to be checked over.  
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It was about 2:00 a.m. when the truck was backing into the firehouse. The crew still had the clean up of the hoses, gear and truck ahead of them, but they all took a few minutes to get coffee, water, or just to rest. Jimmy walked to the front of the station with his coffee cup in hand and looked across the road toward Mikey's house. He saw a shadow in the window and knew that it was Mikey. He reached in his back pocket and held up the harness. Mikey waved back, not knowing that he had saved two lives tonight.  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
The End. 


End file.
